Touchstone's Editors and Allies on News and Events of the Day

March 23, 2005

Canada's Conservatives Can't Be Bothered

Earlier in the convention, Conservative Party Leader Stephen Harper announced that he would not open up debate on abortion if he is elected prime minister. The majority of delegates supported Harper’s stance.

Out of 2,900 delegates, 55 percent voted in favor of maintaining the status quo on abortion, while 45 percent voted against it, seeking further laws on abortion.

And apparently for the usual ignoble reason:

Delegates hope that the decision will help them gain support from urban and eastern Canadians, who largely abandoned the Conservatives in the last election campaign due to fears that the party was pushing a hidden agenda on abortion and other moral issues.